Gaming historian demos four unreleased versions of 'Akira' for the Game Boy

Video game historian and preservationist Patrick Scott Patterson recently managed to get his hands on four copies of an unfinished Akira game for the Game Boy.

Akira, if you don’t already know, is one of the most recognizable manga and amine series ever created. A video game based on the IP was released by Taito in 1988 for the Nintendo Famicom console in Japan. Two other titles – a version for the Amiga CD32 in 1994 and a pinball-style game called Akira Psycho Ball for the PlayStation 2 – were eventually released.

Another title reportedly in the works from THQ for the SNES, Sega Genesis, Game Gear, Sega CD and Game Boy was cancelled and never made it to market. That appears to be what Patterson recently got his hands on.

The prototype games in question came as part of an attic find a few months back, Patterson said on YouTube. Each reportedly contains various bits and pieces of the unfinished game with gameplay mostly consisting of platforming and biking.

Patterson found two other games worth noting as part of the haul – Heavy Weight Hockey for the NES and Mall Rats for the Sega Genesis (no relation to the Kevin Smith film by the same name). Gameplay footage from both of these unreleased games can be found over on Patterson’s YouTube channel.

As for Akira, Patterson said he hopes to try and take the best parts of each build and try to come up with a complete game.